What Lies Within
by Fanfic Lover 4evr
Summary: How many times must they fall to their knees? Dean is desperately trying to get Sam to hold on when darkness comes knocking at their door. Can Sam be saved from the evil that calls to him or will he fall victim to the darkness they've been fighting?
1. Woodland Stalker

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**Disclaimer**: I do not own any of the characters of Supernatural, I just enjoy playing with them when I get the chance.

**Warnings**: Violence, possible cussing, and lots of angst in later chapters.

**Summary**: Sam and Dean have been lead into an unusual hunt where they have to fight something without a name. This creature can sense Sam's weakness and his failing body. Can the brothers hold on long enough to save the remnants of a small town? Or will they fall victim to what lies within? Read and find out!

**Note From the Authoress**: This story emerged from a dream I had... and the weather just beyond my house at this very moment. Additionally, all of the grammatical mistakes are mine, so I apologize if they make it hard to read.

Enjoy the first chapter:

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The sky was cast with large white clouds and it was pleasantly warm outside. He knew it wouldn't last for long, the newspaper had said the weather would be changing rather abruptly to host a particularly nasty storm.

This hunt had come up rather quickly and had his brother and him on the move before either had a chance to regain their bearings from their last encounter with the darkness they sought to destroy. They were lagging and silent as they climbed the trail laid out before them.

A woman had reached them and spoke of terrifying experiences and the usual disappearances taking place in the woods near her home. She'd seen things, and heard things that had her too frightened to continue on as if nothing had transpired.

His brother had rolled his eyes while trying to convince him it was probably just some animals; it was the woods after all. But ever the bleeding heart he wanted to help however he could. He knew the real reason behind his brother's hesitance was because of him, he didn't believe they'd had enough time to shake off their last hunt.

Yes, he was sore and reeling from everything he'd seen but an innocent needed their help and he'd be damned if the carnage continued because he couldn't handle the emotions and thoughts that were tearing him apart from the inside.

It didn't take much for his brother to relent, after all he did own the patented 'puppy-dog look' he'd given his brother since he was old enough to use facial expressions. So they packed up the meager contents of their lives and began another journey down that dark and lonely stretch of highway.

He'd even managed to stay calm and ignorant to the way his brother would steal glances at him from his spot behind the wheel. His brother was worried; after all, he hasn't been very talkative these past few days. There was too much going on inside his head to formulate any words that would comfort his older brother. His thoughts would probably just come out as wretched sobs and broken words anyways. So his mouth remained closed and the turmoil continued from the depths of what was left of his soul.

"We're almost there Sam."

Sam managed to pull his sticky eyelids apart and look around. There were trees everywhere; they were completely surrounded by the foliage. His eyes glanced up and caught sight of the darkening clouds above them. "Looks like rain," he murmured softly.

Dean followed his brother's line of sight to the sky. "We'll need to find a newspaper so we can figure our way around this storm. I freakin' hate getting wet."

Sam let a half-smile show at that comment. He could remember his brother covered head to toe in mud after being forced to jump of the bridge to get away from a scary apparition trying to kill them… again.

Dean's eyebrow quirked at his little brother's expression. "What?"

A little chuckle left Sam's mouth as he explained, "I can still remember what you looked like as the 'Mud Monster'."

The older brother scowled and lightly punched Sam on the arm. "Very funny Mr. Chuckles, very funny. But I do seem to remember a little kid who enjoyed playing in the mud _naked_."

Sam frowned at that embarrassing memory that his brother loved bringing up to keep him in check every now and then. "It was once and I was three."

"… too bad you'll never be able to live that down Sammy," Dean reminded him with a smartass grin.

Sam remained silent and let his brother draw out his recent embarrassing memory battle. His eyes wandered to the window where he saw the 'Welcome to Swatara' sign that passed by them as they turned on the dirt road leading that way.

"So what's this old woman's name again?"

"Fae Carling, her family has lived up this way since the town was founded. Um… she's the only surviving relative of the entire family, she never got married nor had any kids."

Dean nodded while keeping his eyes trained on the road that became increasingly bumpy as they continued. "This old lady should think about investing in some pavement, my baby isn't indestructible you know."

They'd passed the bigger part of town awhile back and were driving their way up part of the mountain to meet this woman and get more information before starting their research of the supposed disturbed area.

"This place is huge Sammy."

Sam had to agree as he watched the large house come closer into view. It appeared to be an old Victorian style manor. The place looked to be disheveled, but Sam was intrigued with the loaded history that must lie in the caliber of such a house.

Bright green vines had wound themselves all over the dark brick of the house while two massive stone lions on each side of the walkway to the house appeared to guard the huge manor.

Dean stopped the Impala and shut off its tired engine. Both Winchester's observed the house in its eerie loneliness, taking in as much as they could like their father had taught them. It was always important to know what you're walking in to, and to know your surroundings.

"… how…"

"Creepy," Sam finished.

Dean smiled at his younger brother, but allowed the smile to drift away when his eyes met his brother's. He knew Sam wasn't doing so well, their last hunt had ended on a sour note… and in a hospital none the less. Sam was still pale as a ghost; the doctor had told him to keep a watchful eye on his concussed brother.

"How's your head?" Dean watched Sam closely. He knew when Sam's eyes quickly flicked away that he was in pain. Dean leaned forward to the glove compartment and pulled out a bottle of pills prescribed by the ER doctor. "Take them," Dean said as he dropped the ugly orange bottle into Sam's lap.

"They make me sleepy Dean." Sam stared at the pill bottle while longing to put a handful of little white pills in his mouth to end the pounding in his brain. "Besides, we're already here; I can't be falling asleep while we're talking to Mrs. Carling."

Dean huffed and mumbled under his breath. "Fine, but when we're done talking to her we are going straight back into town to find a motel to hole up while we're here. And I better see you taking those pills when we get back too."

"Are you trying to get me to pop pills Dean?" Sam tried to joke but saw the warning look on Dean's face and knew it was a giant flop. He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose to relieve some of the pressure building there. Maybe the pills weren't such a bad idea… but he could wait an hour or so before medicating.

"Let's go." And Dean pushed his door open, stepping into the afternoon breeze caused by the oncoming storm.

Sam moved more slowly, cautiously moving to prevent himself from swan diving into the dirt beneath his unstable feet.

Dean studied his little brother and fought down the irritation that crept into his mind. Why did Sam have to be so stubborn… wasn't he stubborn enough for the both of them? "Don't forget the pills Sam."

Sam clenched his jaw at the seemingly innocent order and turned back into the car to grab the bottle lying on its side against the crease in the leather seat. He dramatically pulled it up so Dean could hear the rattling of the pills and dropped it into his jacket pocket. "Happy?"

"Extremely," Dean said lowly in another warning.

They walked side-by-side up the stone pathway, Dean purposely taking it more slowly so Sam didn't have to move too fast and end up passing out. Once at the large oak door, they stopped and stared at the metal head poking out of the door.

"What the hell is that? And where the hell is the doorbell?" Dean asked, studying the door in confusion.

Sam turned to look at his brother and with a quick shake of his head that he immediately regretted, he grabbed the metal bar hanging from the small creatures' mouth and banged it against the door. "It's a door knocker Dean; lots of old houses have them."

"I would hate to be that guy," Dean said, referring to the critter that had the bar hanging from its mouth. "It doesn't look very comfortable."

The younger Winchester was about to reply when the door swung open. An old lady stood in the doorway, her wrinkly skin hung down from parts of her body as if it was trying to crawl away from the body it belonged to. She had a cane in her left hand and a gun in the right, she regarded them with tired eyes.

"Who're you, and what'ta you want?"

Sam found his voice and pushed Dean and his protective posture aside. "I'm Sam and this is my brother Dean; you contacted us about a mystic disturbance."

The woman stared at them for a few more moments and slowly lowered the gun. "Well, what took you boy's so long to get here huh?"

Dean and Sam shared a look of amusement before the older of the two shrugged. "It's a long drive from Oregon ma'am."

"Well come on in, the storm is moving in and I've got something to show you," She smiled and showed her aged yellow teeth that caused a shiver to ripple down Sam's back. "Oh, where are my manners? Hah, my name is Fae Carling, but you boy's can just call me Fae. Don't bother with that ma'am garbage."

"Well _Fae_, what seems to be the problem?"

Sam walked directly behind her as she made her way slowly down the narrow hall and toward a lighted room ahead. "We've read in the local news people have been going missing from the area lately."

The woman stopped suddenly and nodded, turning her head only slightly towards the two boys behind her and whispered, "None of them have been recovered hunny." She started walking again and didn't stop until she was sitting at an old table that was covered in lots of different debris.

Sam smiled his charming smile, trying to break the tense moment. "What did you see Fae?" He glanced over at his brother who was eyeing the room with distaste and harshly kicked him under the table. A soft yelp and a muffled cuss word followed.

Dean glared at his little brother who looked amused. He fought a smile at the quirk of Sam's lips, it's been a while since he's seen his baby brother smile… a real Sammy smile.

The old woman seemed to miss the Winchester moment and was looking out the dining room window and into the distant woods that swayed with the strong winds that was stirring through them. "There's something out there," she mumbles softly.

Sam turned his attention to the window. "Why do you think that?"

"I've see them," she began.

"Them?"

Fae looked at Dean and nodded. "Them," she confirmed.

"Have you seen what they look like Fae?" Sam studied her. Whatever was out there was shaking this elderly lady to the core, she looked absolutely frightened.

A small noise seemed to come from her throat as she turned her eyes back to the brothers. "I know I'm safe here boys, it's the town I fear for."

"Why are you safe and they aren't?' Dean asked.

Fae smiled. "Did you see those stone lions on your way in boys?" Two identical nods urged her forward. "They protect the house, and that old door knocker is also a protection symbol my great grandfather had sent from Europe to protect the house."

She paused for a moment and then began again, "The ground this house was built upon was blessed by a shaman many years ago as well. This land is of a holy level, spirits cannot dwell here. So they stand on the borders of the trees and watch me, taunting as more of these people disappear."

Sam took a deep breath and looked out the window again, the border was far away from the house but you could still easily see if there was something was standing out there… watching. A chill ran up his spine and he felt a light hand on his arm. He turned his head from the window to see it was his brother's hand.

"What do they look like Fae?"

The old woman looked at the older Winchester with a grim smile. "They appear to be dark blobs I guess," she laughed sadly. "Arms, legs, like a large man just standing there and watching… but there have been others beside it on some nights…"

"Do you mind if we stay here tonight? That way we can see what you see and figure out if… or what… this thing is." Dean could feel Sam tensing at the thought; maybe it really was too soon for this.

"Of course you boys can stay, I must say, I feel much safer with two dashing, well-bodied men here to watch over me."

Sam blushed, and Dean rolled his eyes.

_Women._

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TBC...  
_


	2. Into The Woods

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**To the reviewers**: You guys rock, thanks for the support and interest in this story! I'm excited to get this chapter up today so I hope you all enjoy!

**What Lies Within**

**Chapter Two**

Enjoy:

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It didn't take long before the rain began to fall full force from the darkened skies. Thunder boomed and lightening lit up the sky like a light bulb illuminates a dark room.

Luckily Dean Winchester had retrieved both his and his brother's suitcases before the rain had gotten bad. He'd left his little brother to entertain Fae while she made dinner for the three of them, not willing to risk Sam's exposure to the rain.

To both of the Winchester's surprise, Fae was an amazing cook and Dean showed his satisfaction with the food by giving himself several extra helpings of her home cooking. Sam on the other hand pushed his food around his plate; his headache prevented him from enjoying the rarity of a home cooked meal.

"Aren't you hungry Sam," Fae asked, frowning at the pale young man.

Sam looked up and caught the worried looks from both his brother and their host. "I'm sorry Fae, I've got a headache."

"I have some aspirin sweetheart… let me go get some…" The old woman grabbed her cane and began hauling herself up from the wooden chair she was sitting on.

"There's no need Fae," Dean stopped her. "Sam's got some medicine with him." He gave his brother another once over and raised himself from the table. "That was an awesome meal Fae, thanks."

Fae blushed and waved a hand at Dean. "It was nothing boys."

"I guess I should get Sammy to bed before he takes a nose dive into his potatoes," Dean joked, and realized Sam hadn't even shot him a glare.

Dean hauled Sam upright.

"The guest room?"

"I'm guessing you'll want directions then. There are lots of rooms, you can pick from any one of them, mine is closest to the stairs at the top of the landing… any other is free," Fae offered.

Dean nodded and led Sam to the bottom of the stairs, when out of earshot Dean leaned forward and whispered into Sam's ears. "Take a damn pill Sam."

"I told you they make me sleepy, and we need to be up to see if we can get a glimpse of whatever it is that's out there…"

"It doesn't mean this thing is supernatural Sam, it could be kids from the town messing with…"

"What about all the missing people Dean?" Sam looked at his brother and shook his head, "How do you explain that man?"

Dean nodded, "I realize that okay? How about you take the pill and sleep, I'll wake you up if I see anything out by the woods."

"You need sleep too Dean. Despite what you think about yourself, you're not indestructible."

_I know that Sam, but right now I'm not worried about me_, Dean thought to himself. There really wasn't any point in arguing with Sam right now, the kid looked like death warmed over. This simple headache and turned into a full-blown migraine. It was obvious by the way Sam was trying to shield his eyes from the dim light above them. Even that much light was causing him to cringe.

"Come on kid, let's get you upstairs and laying flat before you fall down and can't get up."

Dean managed to usher Sam up the stairs and got him lying flat on the bed. He'd also managed to get Sam to swallow some of his pain pills, and soon Sam had drifted off leaving Dean to protect and keep watch of whatever was hiding in the woods.

"Wake me up when you get tired… or if you see somethin'," Sam had slurred while trying to fight the effects of his medication.

Dean agreed and took a seat next to the large window in their room that looked right into the woods. He'd be able to see them if they decided to show their freaky, supernatural faces tonight.

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Dean hadn't been intending on falling asleep during his watch… it just kind of happened. It wasn't until a hand on his shoulder jolted him back into consciousness. His body tensed and he was ready to react defensively until he recognized the presence beside him. "Sam…"

"I told you to wake me if you got tired Dean," Sam hissed. He had a right to be mad, after all, he was more than a little surprised to wake up in the middle of the night and see his brother drooling and asleep while on watch.

Dad would have ripped him a new one.

Dean looked up at Sam and smiled sheepishly. "I guess I was more tired than I thought."

"Yeah, tell that to all the victims families Dean. I'm sure they'd be more than willing to forgive you," Sam said rather rudely.

Scowling, Dean stood and pointed his finger into Sam's chest. "What the hell is your problem? Did the Queen of Sheba wake up on the wrong side of the bed or something?"

Dean took the few moment of silence to glare at his brother, and he was shocked at what he saw. Sam looked terrible, even paler than earlier, sweating as if he were sitting inside a sauna and his breathing was heavy and ragged too.

"You okay Sam?" Dean asked carefully as he moved his hand from Sam's chest to hold his upper arm.

"Just tired Dean, quit being a mother hen," Sam mumbled while walking to Dean's recently deserted seat and sitting heavily upon it. "Nightmare?"

Sam nodded and stared out the window.

"Want to talk about it?"

Sam shook his head this time. "There's nothing you can do about them Dean."

Alarm bells were going off in his head, but Dean swallowed them down and allowed himself to take a seat next to his brother. "What time is it anyway?"

"Sometime after three in the morning," Sam replied rather distractedly.

"You know, you can go lie down while I keep watch. Really, I'm awake now."

Sam looked over at Dean with a frown. "You might fall asleep again; I don't want to miss this thing Dean… I can't chance it."

Dean fought down an angry order and turned his eyes back to the window.

The rain was still falling heavy, and the wind was still pushing the tree branches like rag dolls. But there appeared to be absolutely no movement out on the border of the woods.

Time went by slowly as the brothers sat side-by-side and remained silent as they continued their watch at the window. Both boys seemed incredibly immersed by the thoughts racing through their heads… they almost missed it.

"Dean," Sam called softly as he leaned forward in his seat to stare intently out the window.

"What?" Dean asked as he too leaned forward and gazed out into the downpour of rain to search for what Sam was looking at. His eyes widened when his eyes caught the little white speck heading towards the woods.

Was that… "Fae?"

"What is she doing?"

They both watched in shock as the old woman, clad in her nightgown walked slowly towards the woods. She looked as if she was sleepwalking. Unconsciously taking a stroll into the woods where these creatures were supposedly lurking… _what the hell?_

Sam's eyes widened when he caught something on the border of the woods. A dark hand could be seen poking out through the woods, the fingers where pointy and menacing. Its position looked as if it was beckoning Fae forward.

"Dean!" Sam realized with horror it had picked its next victim. _So much for the holy land and sacred stone lions_, Sam thought angrily.

Sam was on his feet in seconds, heading out the bedroom and down the stairs in a flash with Dean hot on his heels. He could distantly hear Dean yelling something about weapons, but the adrenaline mixed with the blood pumping crazily throughout his body prevented him from understanding what his brother was even talking about.

"Fae!" Sam screamed as he soared out the back door and charged towards the old woman that was getting precariously closer to the hand that was willing her forward.

"Sam!" Dean yelled, trying to keep up with his brother. He had intended on retrieving some of their weapons from the Impala when Sam had fallen asleep, but he'd been careless enough to fall asleep too and look where it had gotten them.

Sam was already soaked and he wasn't even halfway across the yard. Somewhere between his exit of the house and his mad dash across the rainy ground he realized he was still in the pair of sweatpants and T-shirt Dean had insisted on changing into before lying down. He wasn't even wearing shoes. None of that though seemed to matter, what mattered was the sweet old lady transcending unknowingly towards her death. So he kept his pace and tread forward.

A growl emitted from the border of the woods as the creature looked curiously upon the two beings heading towards it and its prey. The thing smiled, pointy teeth barring as the old woman got closer to the woods.

Dean wasn't able to keep up with Sam, but raced as hard as he could all the while watching horrified as Fae crossed the border and was taken by the hand that called her to it and disappeared from sight. His eyes turned to his brother who was racing towards the woods and desperately calling Fae. With a sudden clarity and a pain in the pit of his stomach Dean knew what his brother was going to do.

"Sam, don't!"

Dean could have sworn that his heart stopped at the sight of his brother barreling into the woods and disappearing from sight.

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Cliffhanger... I know I'm evil ^_^

_Stay Tuned!_ _TBC..._


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